In the construction of oil or gas wells it is usually necessary to line the wellbore with a string of steel pipes commonly known as a “tubular” or tubing or generically as oil country tubular goods (“OCTG”). Because of the length of the tubular string required, individual sections of tubular are typically progressively added to the string in the wellbore as it is lowered into a well from a drilling rig or platform. The section to be added is restrained from falling into the well by some tubular engagement means, typically a spider. The section is then lowered into the well to position the threaded pin of the tubular to be added adjacent to the threaded box and/or female end of the tubular already in the wellbore. The two sections are then joined by relative rotation of the sections. This process may be repeated until such time as the desired total length of the tubular string has been achieved.
In one aspect, embodiments disclosed herein relate to a hydraulic actuator with integrated torque turn monitoring features disposed within the actuator assembly. Some embodiments include an outer hydraulic section which is rotationally fixed and an inner hydraulic section at an upper end with integrated torque turn monitoring features disposed within the inner hydraulic section. Certain embodiments additionally include a gripping apparatus, actuated by the inner hydraulic section at a lower end. The gripping apparatus includes an outer cage concentrically disposed about an inner mandrel. The outer cage is axially movable relative to the inner mandrel for engaging and disengaging a tubular with a plurality of rolling supports. The actuator assembly includes an inner hydraulic section which is coupled to the outer cage. The inner hydraulic section is axially movable relative to the inner mandrel. An upper fluid chamber is disposed between the inner hydraulic section and the inner mandrel, and a lower fluid chamber is disposed between the inner hydraulic section and the inner mandrel. Fluid pumped through a lower pressure port into the lower chamber moves the inner hydraulic section in a direction thereby causing the gripping apparatus to engage the tubular. Fluid pumped through an upper pressure port into the upper fluid chamber moves the inner hydraulic section in the opposite direction thereby causing the gripping apparatus to disengage the tubular. The integrated torque turn monitoring features measure the axial load and/or torque load during connection makeup and down hole rotation as well as the number of rotations and rotational speed of the tubular. The integrated torque turn actuator comprises a sensor to measure axial load and/or torque load during connection make up, break out, and down hole rotation and/or a gyroscopic sensor for measuring number of rotations and rotational speed. Certain embodiments may also comprise a positional sensor for measuring the absolute degrees of rotation over time. Axial load and/or torque load measuring devices include, but are not limited to, mechanical, rotating, foil, diffused semiconductor, and/or thin film strain gauges, as well as stationary proximity, magnetostrictive, and/or magnetoelastic sensors. Rotational speed sensors typically include a gyroscope.
In another aspect, embodiments disclosed herein relate to a method of monitoring torque load while operating a hydraulic actuator including a gripping apparatus. The gripping apparatus includes an outer cage concentrically disposed about an inner mandrel and axially movable relative to the inner mandrel for engaging and disengaging a plurality of rolling supports with a tubular. The method includes providing an actuator assembly with a rotationally fixed outer hydraulic section and a rotationally independent inner hydraulic section for moving the outer cage, the inner hydraulic section being coupled to the outer cage, and an upper fluid chamber defined between the inner hydraulic section and the inner mandrel, and a lower fluid chamber defined between the inner hydraulic section and the inner mandrel. In some embodiments, the inner hydraulic section is sealably engaged with the outer hydraulic section using a bearing. Due to the arrangement of upper and lower fluid chambers, the inner and outer hydraulic sections are axially fixed to each other, thereby preventing the bearing from being exposed to significant axial forces and extending the life of the bearing. The method further includes pumping fluid into the lower chamber and moving the inner hydraulic section and outer cage axially relative to the inner mandrel, thereby causing the gripping apparatus to engage the tubular.